STEVEN GERRARD walked into the Blue Room on Friday and immediately owned it in his first press conference as Rangers manager.

And I can guarantee he will do the same when he goes into the changing room in a couple of weeks and meets his players for the first time.

He spoke like a manager, a leader and spoke as if he has got a ruthless side to him. There will be fear, definite fear, from the players.

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He has got a presence, he was positive, and when he speaks you will listen. He instantly commands respect because of who he is and what he has done in football.

Walter Smith was the one for me that really had that fear factor. As soon as he came into the room, everyone shut up and listened.

And I can see Gerrard bringing that. You would need to have totally the wrong mindset to not listen to someone like Steven Gerrard and not want to learn from him.

You look at what happened in the Old Firm game at Hampden with Andy Halliday coming off, Daniel Candeias going straight up the tunnel and then the post-match situation with Lee Wallace and Kenny Miller.

Does that show that there wasn’t that leadership at the club? I can guarantee you that nobody will be doing that when Gerrard is the manager and that is what the difference will be.

I think that has been missing at the club for a while now and then it will come down to what players he is able to attract over the next few weeks and months.

I have seen a lot of comments from some pundits having a go at him when they haven’t done a fraction of what Steven Gerrard has done in the game.

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To me, it doesn’t matter if you haven’t managed before when you have got the stature and the experience that he has.

I always remember the team-talk he gave after the Manchester City game in the season that Liverpool were going for the title.

He pulled everyone together after the game, got them together and the camera was right in on him rallying his players.

They were world-class, international players and he was getting them by the scruff of the neck and motivating them and getting them going. That is managerial material right there.

He can’t do anything about the fact he has only coached at Under-18 level or the fact that he doesn’t have a CV as a manager.

So it is just astounding the negativity that some people in this country have towards him and what has come out over the last few days.

He is only just in the job and people are writing him off. I think that just sums it up.

If you watched his press conference last week, you couldn’t fail but be impressed by him and if you are a player you have to be inspired by him.

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He is a winner, he is a leader and the way he came across was brilliant and it filled me with a lot of positivity for Rangers for next season.

That is the kind of manager that I would have wanted to play for, someone with that fear factor, and I hope it works out well for him at Ibrox.

He has put a lot on the line to come to Rangers and taking that first step here and some people are having a go at him for that. It is unbelievable and I can’t understand the negativity towards him.

We have someone that was a world class midfielder, someone that has played at the highest level, raising the profile of Rangers and Scottish football and people can’t see the positives in that.

But, like all managers, he will be judged on his results. When you look at Mark Warburton, then Pedro Caixinha and then Graeme Murty as interim, Gerrard can’t do any worse can he?

Look at the players and former team-mates that have wished him well over the last few days. That tells you how respected he is and how far his contacts in the game go.

Having him at Ibrox is really exciting for Rangers and hopefully now he is given the backing to go and get the players that he wants.

Gary McAllister is different class and will help him a lot as his assistant manager. He knows the game up here, he knows the game in England and he has that experience in the dugout that Steven does. It is a no-brainer.

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Now that the board have persuaded Steven to make the move to Ibrox, they have to back him with funds to allow him to bring players in.

I think he will be looking to build a new team and a new squad over the summer and he will want to get players that he knows will have the mentality to play for the club.

As a new manager coming in, he will want to put his stamp on the squad and the team as quickly as possible.

Rangers haven’t lived up to their expectations and levels that they should be because they have had another trophyless season and they haven’t got second place secured yet.

That would tell anyone coming in that there has to be a change of mentality and a change of personnel over the summer.

That will take money, though. He will need funds to bring people in, but also to get rid of some of the players that are under contract but just aren’t good enough.

There will be a lot of focus on how much Steven is given by the board but the important thing is that he spends what he gets well and gets value for it.

If you look at the last manager, Rangers wasted millions and millions on players, both in fees and wages, and haven’t had an acceptable return from them. That has to change.

The recruitment has to be spot on this time and that is where I think Steven can use his contacts throughout the game and that will hopefully be one of the strengths that we see straight away this summer.